Mike Levy, UT Law Alum And Texas Monthly Founder, On Luck, Relationships, And 'Logan Roy Energy'

Evan Smith (left) and Mike Levy (right)

"Alright, already, the show goes on / All night, 'til the morning we dream so long / Anybody ever wonder, when they would see the sun up / Just remember when you come up, the show goes on." -- Lupe Fiasco, JR Get Money

On Wednesday, the Penn Wharton Alumni Club of Austin hosted "Made in Austin: Business and Media Legends of Texas," an event featuring Mike Levy and Evan Smith, founders of Texas Monthly and The Texas Tribune, respectively.

The event's nostalgic mood was palpable as this year marks the 50th Anniversary of the Texas Monthly, and Smith recently retired from his role as The Texas Tribune's CEO, after 13 years at the helm, and 17 other years with the Texas Monthly before that. Levy welcomed Smith to Texas Monthly 30 years ago with the warm salutation: "Welcome to Texas Monthly, don't f*ck up."

Reading letters between Levy and other journalism figures reminds me of the adversarial correspondences between Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr. The irascible Levy is no doubt one of the most colorful figures in Texas media. His protege Smith, a bit more buttoned up, gave an equally entertaining speech to the sold-out crowd before they sat down for a fireside chat and Q&A session with the audience.

Levy graduated from St. Mark's School of Texas, the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and The University of Texas School of Law. During his college years Levy worked summers for the Dallas County Sheriff's office as a jailer, for Yellow Cab of Dallas, and for United Press International. Following college, he worked for Philadelphia magazine and in the Texas State Senate. He founded Texas Monthly in 1973, sold it in 1997 for $36 million, and remained its publisher until 2008. Today, Texas Monthly is still considered one of the best magazines in the country.

Here were some of the memorable pieces of advice shared by Levy during his keynote address:

Digital, print, broadcast -- all these mediums and media need time to develop properly.Time is the main issue when developing an audience. We require their time. Was it worth their time? What is the ROI on the time they are spending with you.One thing they don't teach in business school -- luck. Luck turns you left when you were supposed to go right. Luck was a small printing vendor forgetting to invoice us on time for the first six issues, if they had -- we would've been bankrupt.My "life forces" are what my dad, a plumber who served in the Hungarian military, instilled in me; and my rabbi's core message -- "if you have an ability to make a difference and you don't, it's wrong."My journalism education was nontraditional -- selling newspapers and family photographers in Dallas door to door.Law school taught me the value of the Socratic method and relationships.Relationships are everything -- staff, customers, and family. Friendships are vital.You can't teach leadership, culture, empathy. It is the people, people, people. Money is only one part. Being part of organization doing something important ... I'm with the best of the best. Commitment to excellence!I don't call coworkers and colleagues "family," we are a "community."When you run a business -- the top guy is your most important sales person.Fact checkers are legendary. There is no period after Dr in Dr Pepper.For the interview process, spend a lot of time talking to peers and subordinates.Lots of smart people lack common sense and knowledge.Value dissent. It is healthy. No glass ceilings. Compensation decisions should be based on a group. If anybody saw other compensation on paper, they would get it. It should be fair.Informing communities strengthens democracy!

During the Q&A, I had asked them about their favorite scene or reference from "Succession." Without missing a beat, Smith responded: "Mike Levy has Logan Roy energy!"

Just as the crowds of a farewell tour feel like they are witnessing history, those of us inside Studio A in the new Austin Media Center at Austin PBS couldn't help but feel a sense of gratitude and awe -- to hear firsthand recollections of how these media companies were formed and the obstacles they overcame throughout their storied histories. For us all, the show must go on.

Renwei Tai Chung is the DEI Columnist at Above the Law. He currently serves as a Board Advisor for The Diversity Movement (TDM), and the host of TDM's and Footnote 4's new podcast Charge the Wave -- focused on entrepreneurs, executives, and icons who are assiduously building companies, cultures, and communities.